S: Spicy, with cloves that stand out and also complement the mild roast. Yeast is also present, adding some contrasting brightness. No alcohol is detected.

T: Begins off-dry, with nutty brown malt and yeast phenolics that are mild compared to the aroma. Fine tartness emerges in the soft bready middle that retains some nutshell and even mild chocolate roasted character. The finish is similarly soft, with cloves and fading dark fruit. No alcohol is detected.

M: Medium viscosity, balanced on the palate showing both acidic and coating aspects, with moderate carbonation.

D/O: This is definitely one of the most unexpected styles to come out of the Lips of Faith series thus far, being neither sour, or barrel-aged, or even Belgian-inspired. In execution it is really good, bringing a focused but expected collection of sensory qualities to a beer that is deceptively easy-going at 9% abv. Although flavors can't quite live up to the intensity promised by the smell, this beer's different facets work together in a practiced--almost engineered--fashion. Doubly appropriate, considering its German pedigree. (1,330 characters)

Poured from a bomber with a cryptic date stamp of 110107031 into a weizen glass.

A. Very dark brown, almost black, but not. Absolutely no head to speak of, which worries me considering the cryptic date stamp. Just how long has this beer sat in the store? Points deducted for lack of head.

S. Banana Bread with nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon and hints of cardamom. Very full of spice. If my nose could drool in anticipation, it probably would be. As it warms up some I start to pick up a hint of a vaguely smokey aroma. That's kind of odd, but I like it nevertheless.

T. Banana Bread with candi sugar, than cloves and...allspice hit me hard. At the back end of the taste there is a healthy dollop of baking chocolate. And yet it never gets cloying. Very nice.

M. Medium to heavy bodied. Full of flavor.

I'd buy this one again when in the mood for the style. The only thing that worries me is that cryptic date code. I have no idea how fresh this bomber was when I purchased it out of the cooler. If it is indeed somewhat old, I'm even more impressed and would like to taste what the difference would be fresher. But....*shrug* I guess I may never know. This one was delicious enough as is, I suppose. (1,198 characters)

The beer pours a dark brown color with good head retention and lacing. The nose is just wonderful in this beer, consisting of clove, bananna, licorice, chocolate, vanilla, smoked bacon and impressive underlying spice. It's almost too much of a good thing, but not for me. The flavor profile replicates the nose in this moderately sweet beer, with the smoke and licorice dominating otherwise. Mouthfeel is long and spice filled, with the alcohol barely noticeable and well integrated into the flavor profile. It's really amazing the amount of flavor this beer delivers.

Just delicious.... probably the best domestic example I can think of for the style. (653 characters)

A- Pours a deep brown color with crimson highlights when held to the light. Two finger tna head shows medium retention. Nice streaks and light webbing of lace on the sides of the glass.

S- To me overripe banana comes in first with the aroma. This gets partnered with spices like clove and the two become almost all I can smell. Alcohol does come in and tingle to nose. Light notes of bubblegum in the very end.

T- Overripe banana does come through in the front of the beer with some light bubblegum hints. The clove comes through next with a semi-dominate flavor. Middle of the beer shows some light darker fruits (fig and raisin mostly). Ending shows a light bubblegum note with a ton of candi sugar in this. I have feeling to believe this shows the higher ABV. Banana comes through in the ending with warming alcohol.

M- Medium heavy mouthfeel. Carbonation is good for the style. Banana, clove, and bubblegum show up on the palate. Aftertaste is alcohol, candi sugar, and banana. Flavors were a little underbalanced I thought as they didn't flow together. No off flavors were detected while drinking this beer. Medium heavy alcohol drying left on the palate.

O- This beer was a interesting drinker that I enjoyed but wouldn't go for many glasses of it. The ABV was a little much and showed in the flavor too much at times. A good try for the style but I just wasn't feeling it as much at times. (1,427 characters)

Poured from a bomber into my tulip glass. By color the beer is very dark. It is a very deep brown, almost black. After an aggressive pour I got a solid 1.5 inches of tan head. The retention is quite good, and the head slowly recedes to a film with a large island in the middle of my glass. After the head has receeded i am left with some beautiful parallel lacing. There is some visible carbonation at the very edge of my glass. The smell is held up by a backbone of wheat, but the spices catch my nose quite strongly, a more subtle banana smell is also present. The first thing to hit my tastebuds is the rich wheat taste, as the beer crests my tongue I catch the well implemented spices. The mouthfell is fulfilling, and carbonation lifts the beer off the tongue a little, making it slightly refreshing. Overall this is a wonderful beer from a style I thoroughly enjoy. I doubt it will still be around, but this would be a great winter day beer. (947 characters)

22oz bottle from Arctic Liquors in Steamboat, CO. Around $7. Into a NB Globe.

A: Cola colored with a cream head about an inch thick that sticks around fairly nicely. Excellent clarity, and nice gobs of lacing. Really nice looking red high lights when held to the light.

S: Tons of spices, huge amount of cloves and a fair amount of banana as well, some pepper notes, I also get some notes of cinnamon and nutmeg as well and even some all spice. A bit of a wheat malt smell, but this is really heavy on the spices.

T: Huge wheat malts, not nearly as spicy up front as the nose would suggest, but there is a definite amount of spice on the aftertaste. Slightly chocolatey. Banana is definitely there, but the clove is a bit subdued compared to what the nose leads on. Finish is really long on the spices and the combination is reminiscent of pumpkin pie. I also get a few curry notes mixed in as well. Tons of flavors, fairly complex. No booze whatsoever in this one. Damn tasty.

M: Fairly hefty body on this beer, with lower carbonation, really creamy, fairly sticky, and a little bit of warmth as it is swallowed.

O: Wow, this is a gem from NB. I have somewhat lost taste for many wheat beers, but this one is incredibly well done. It may not totally be to style, but along the lines of "would you have another?" it definitely hits the mark. Really a nice beer, hopefully they make this one again. (1,407 characters)

Purchased this at Argonaut Liquors on colorful Colfax in Denver.Beautiful walnut brown, oddly clear, which I was not expecting. Was this filtered? There wasn't any yeast chilling at the bottom of my bottle. Pours with a big fat topping of foam that erodes into a thin, broken sheet across the top of the beer. Spotty lacing sticks around in scattered, little bits.Smells strongly of german wheat beer yeastiness. Lots of ripe banana and clove, with an underpinning of mocha and vanilla. Banana bread-like, to sum it up simply.The first sip opens to reveal a pretty sweet brew, overall. Very light bitterness, the spotlight focused intensely on the qualities of the yeast used. It's a fine yeast at that, providing a strong banana character which is further yummified by the drizzled chocolate flavor of the malt. A little bit of vanilla, with a great, mocha-like character overall. Moderate clove spiciness in the finish, and actually a little dry despite the alcohol content. Certainly full bodied, creamy and soft, with a jovial, fluffy carbonation that keeps things from bogging down. A slight alcohol burn becomes noticeable after my palate acclimates to the sweetness.Probably one of my favorites from New Belgium. This is a really great dunkelweizen, if a bit over the top. Probably more of a weizenbock, as it's far more similar to Aventinus than to any dunkelweizen I've had. (1,387 characters)

Pours a deep red/brown color, with a quickly settling head that leaves a ring of white lacing that slowly recedes.

Smell is sweet, strong malt, lots of clove, smoke, and a hint of coffee. Malty banana is in the back, with lots of dark fruit in the finish.

Taste is exactly like the smell, but with an earthy quality that really ties things together. Lots of smoke to help the fruity flavors. The finish is all clove, with a sweet, slightly hoppy aftertaste.

Mouthfeel is good, slick and creamy to go with the malty flavors.

Drinkability is also good, the hops add just enough kick to keep the alcohol in check.

Overall, a great example of the style, in a more hardcore, American micro way. (714 characters)

Bought a bomber of this in Las Vegas for $5.99. 9% ABV. Pours out to a brilliantly clear dark mahogany, foing a nice light yello head with excellent retention and good lacing despite my cheap hotel highball glass. The aroma is noticed at arms length. Rich brown bananas, walnuts, caramel syrup, and a very interesting pungent cheesiness, almost like the smoke of rauchbiers. Mouthfeel is soft with a big dense body. Taste of browner bananas, burnt rubber, lots of cloves and peculiar higher order phenolics with a mild bitterness. Aftertaste of leather and cooked walnuts. This is the closest you'll get to banana bread. Very interesting and heady. Very rich. One bottle is entire meal unto itself. Worth trying. (712 characters)

Bottle poured into a weizen glass. Been pretty excited to try this one!

A: Pours a dark ruby brown that is slightly purple when held to the light, with a nice 3 finger tan head that settle into decent lacing.

S: Spices (especially clove) dominate the nose. Alcohol is a little too apparent, but expected given the 9%ABV (I'd pretty much call this an imperial dunkel). A hint of banana and vine fruit at the end.

T: WOW. Traditional banana, bubblegum and clove are kicked up a notch here. Nice malt sweetness is well balanced with spicy yeast. There's also a fig/raisin note, but it comes across a little too sweet when it mixes with the candi sugar notes. Alcohol becomes too prevalent as it warms, and burns a bit right on the back of the throat, just like when you eat something too quickly right out of the microwave.

M: On the thicker side for the style, but it suits the stronger flavors well. Coats the mouth nicely but not too sticky.

O: I definitely like this beer, but a few things hold it back from greatness. First, absolutely too much alcohol. I think it'd be perfect at 7 or 7.5%. The fruit notes here are great and well balanced, but maybe a little too sweet. I'd call it an imperial dunkel, which is a great unique spin on the style by NB. They should just tone a few things down and make a world-class American dunkel. (1,339 characters)

Taste is black pepper, tar, prunes, dark whole wheat (esp in aftertaste), faint hint of licorice, strong clove, and spiciness. It has a hint of a weizenbock crossed with a Belgian ale esp. in yeastiness. It’s very good but not outstanding. (367 characters)

A- Pours a GIANT foamy light tan head. Very dark brown beer with hints of purple. Some lacing towards top of the glass, head subdued fairly quickly.

S- A lot of mixed spice in this one. Some clove, pepper, allspice, etc. I also get a very ripe grape aroma that is forward in the nose. Definitely some banana to boot...

T/M- At first I get a rubbery/medicinal taste; this however, faded after the first 3 or so drinks. This beer tastes like it was brewed with a mix of german and belgian yeasts. The flavor profiles of the two strains really clash on the tongue. I get the pepper and (very slight) funk mixed with the clove malty sweetness and raisins; finished with the same banana presented in the aroma. After it sat for 15-20min it really smoothed out and became a nice balanced malty beer. It has some warmth to it, but masks the 9% well. It has a medium/full body with medium/light carbonation. Pretty smooth in the mouth overall.

O- This beer was a little disappointing at first, but now I'm really digging it. When it smooths out it has a nice balance. It really has a strong belgian dark hefeweizen feel to it. Not bad for around $6 a bomber! (1,180 characters)

Quite lovely in the tulip glass with thin lacing and lots of prickly carbonation in the mouth. Amazing aroma; about as strong as I've ever gotten from a beer. Flavor simply smacks you in the head. For a beer without the extreme-IPA hop blast, it's an amazing amount of taste. Hops do come on strong, but it's just part of a long and evolving mouthful of flavor. The pepper seems to reinforce the powerful cloves-- I'd have believed it was from the actual spice instead of esters.

If you like powerful rich ales, this is a must-try. The pepper is a novel idea and it works with the huge malt flavors. Deep, dark roasted malt, bitter cloves, cedar cigar wrappers. (699 characters)

Pours a dark brown, almost black with whitish tan head that fades quickly. Smells like sugared banana, spices and a touch of booze. The taste is really good - a spiced, sugared banana-bomb. Much smoother than it seems like it is going to be from the nose, but stilla touch of booziness holds it back a touch. Funny enough, this is like a holiday beer to me and I think normal spiced holiday beers are way too much. Mouthfeel is slightly lower in carbonation and pretty thick for the style. Overall, this is an enjoyable take on the style. (538 characters)

Extra bottle showed up today from thagr81us. Thanks! I've wanted to get this since I heard of it. I hope NB start distributing in this market soon. Violated my no beer in April rule because of the huge tax check I had to write tonight. I don't write a 5000$ check without getting a blowjob, nap, or a beer. 2 out of three ain't bad.

Beer served in an Erdinger Weissbrau glass, Beer is dark brown / ruby, mostly clear with a tan head of small bubbles, moderate to low carbonation, lacing on the glass. It isn't hazy enough, it isn't carbonated enough. Oh well.

Sweet, cloves, some banana, smell is mildly alcoholic, whoa, this beer is 9% ABV. That sucks. Too much alcohol.

Wow, this beer tastes awesome. It is medium in body, perhaps a little heavy, sweet up front and finishes with a nice banana character. There is some mild spiciness in the front half of the beer. The finish is nice.

This beer started out slow and had a nice finish to it. I really liked it. (965 characters)

Appearance - Pours fairly dark with a nice creme colored head that almost seems like nitro. Almost looks like a soda in color.

Smell - Lots of fruit and spice in the smell. I smell mostly banana and clove.

Taste - Flavor is very similar to the smell. Taste banana and a delicious aftertaste that lingers around.

Mouthfeel - I was surprised by the amount of carbonation, it was a lot more then I was expecting. But it really worked well and helped the flavor stick around.

Overall - I really enjoyed this beer! Normally I am not a huge fan of "spicy" beers but this was really good. You really can't taste the high ABV at all and it is very drinkable. I will definitely be buying a few more for my stockpile. (713 characters)

A: If I didn't know this was a beer I would say that it had the same hue as a coke/dr. pepper. Poured a doughy 1.5 fingers of creme colored head

S: Smells almost exactly like bananas foster mixed with clove, belgian spices, some chocolate and a nice hint of grape. Smells delicious to say the least

T: Taste is similar to the smell. Yeasty bread, dark malt, bananas, clove, the spices I got in the nose were more prevalent in the taste, maybe a hint of maple syrup or some sticky molasses. Very tasty

M : Medium bodied with a great amount of carbonation. Coats the mouth quite nicely with the aftertaste

O: I think New Belgium did an excellent job with this one. I spent some time in Germany for work and this is right on par with some of the best dunkels I had while I was there. (784 characters)

Pour is dark practically opaque with burgundy highlights and a thin but tight layer of ashen head which leaves plentiful spotty lacing all around the glass.

Fruity esters and Belgian spices predominate the nose, ripened banana dominates but some dark fruit and clove shine through. Malts are very bready and there is a twinge of grain and arising alcohol is you take a long smell at it.

Over all I feel that despite being a wheat the flavors come off as deep and earthy. A complex mix of muted banana mixed with cloves, dark fruit, figs and grapes come to mind along with a slight mustiness. Tartness comes from a wheat twang and the fruit at the end of the drink but settles nicely. Yeast assisted the complexity which brings the bready malts to surface. Clean but not crisp or overly drying on the finish. Sneaky alcohol, well disguised. Liquid banana and raisin bread.

Mouth feel is a little thin, not surprising due to this being a wheat beer, with active carbonation. Finish is clean.

Lips of faith series is showing up to impress this quarter. This beer feels like it borrowed some of the best qualities from both Abbey and Sunshine, a great value and a welcome treat. (1,178 characters)

Color is a dark brown, pretty clear with burnished red highlights. If you think this is opaque, hold it up to the light. Head is an ashy grey, short but leaving nice lace. Aromas leaning toward phenols and earth tones. Bready, just about where a dunkelweiss should be. Lacking the potent raisin component of the best in style.

The flavor here is somewhat muted again. Malty leads with ripe banana, fig, light purple grapes, and carob. Definitely fruity. This could be a banana-grape smoothie in another incarnation. Pleasant flavor, nice take on the dunkel style, as it really isn't too far off the beaten path, yet some dunkelweizens make me sick with the mushy banana. Pretty cool.

Enjoyable. A little thin, but it is a wheat beer. Carbonation is solid, not too sticky or heavy. Booze is well hidden, and with a fairly thin profile and body, that's quite a feat. Overall a fairly impressive brew within its style even though it doesn't completely appeal to me. (964 characters)